Most conversations about AI in energy start with the technology. Kurt Kemmerly starts with the outcome. 

Kurt is the SVP of AI Adoption and Consumption at IFS, and his entire approach is built around one question: what does the customer need this to achieve? Everything else, the tooling, the rollout, the change management, follows from the answer. 

It made for one of the most grounded conversations I have had on IFS Voices of Industry so far. 

IFS Voices of Industry is a podcast that grounds the conversation around Industrial AI in real experience. Each episode brings together people across IFS who have spent time in the field, in hangars, on construction sites, and who now shape how AI is built and applied through IFS.ai. 

Kurt built his career in mission critical environments. He started in infrastructure for oil and gas operations, where uptime was non-negotiable and precision was the baseline. From there, he moved through systems engineering, business development, and customer success before taking on the role he holds now. That progression gave him something I think is rare in AI leadership: a firsthand understanding of what field teams and operations leaders actually need before they can trust a new way of working. 

What does it take for Industrial AI to deliver real value in energy operations?

Industrial AI delivers real value in energy when it is anchored to a specific operational outcome, not adopted for the sake of adopting it. Kurt’s view is that the organizations getting the most from AI are the ones that started with a clear job to be done and selected the right combination of people, process, and product to get there. 

In energy and utilities, that means AI applied to monitoring, safety, compliance, and regulatory workflows on the operational side. On the back office side, it means workflow automation, document extraction from complex legal agreements, and agentic solutions that handle volume at a speed and consistency humans cannot match alone. 

Kurt made the point that the energy industry has been among the most progressive operationally, but the back office has only recently started catching up. That is where some of the most practical Industrial AI value is sitting right now, and where IFS is helping customers make real progress. 

One of the things he said that stayed with me was about how AI surfaces the things that need attention, rather than treating every data point the same. 

“How do we address the things that require attention? I think that is really the differentiator with AI.” 

The value is not in having AI everywhere. It is in having it where it counts. 

How IFS guides energy customers from AI interest to confident adoption 

One of the realities Kurt talked about openly is that change is difficult in industries where safety, compliance, and uptime are daily requirements. I have seen this firsthand in conversations with IFS customers. They need a partner who understands the stakes and can guide them through the process with confidence. 

That is exactly how Kurt’s team operates at IFS. Every engagement is anchored to a desired outcome. The technology is positioned as the vehicle to get there, and the human is in the loop from the very beginning. Onboarding is structured, expectations are set early, and value is demonstrated before scale is introduced. 

“We’ve done this many times. Our customers have not. We need to be their guide.” 

What I found compelling about this is how clearly it reflects IFS’s maturity in this space. Kurt is describing a method that has been tested and refined across real customer engagements. AI only delivers value when it is adopted, and IFS has built an adoption approach that treats that as the starting point from day one. 

Where should energy leaders start with Industrial AI? 

Kurt’s advice for energy leaders ready to move forward: start with one specific workflow, deliver a measurable first win, and use that result to build momentum across the organization. 

He described it as boiling a bucket, then the next one, then the next. It is a practical approach, and it works because it builds internal confidence through real proof. When one team sees a clear result, curiosity spreads to the next. Kurt called it creating “intrigue internally,” and I think that is exactly right. 

This is consistent with what I see across IFS customers in other industries as well. The organizations making the most progress with Industrial AI are the ones that started with one clear problem and expanded from there, guided by a partner who understood the pace and precision their industry demands. 

“Focus on the job to be done and how we get there. AI is just a vehicle to get us there more quickly, more efficiently, and more accurately.” 

What I took away from this conversation 

Kurt’s outcome-first thinking stayed with me after we wrapped. It is a reminder that the most effective Industrial AI strategies begin with a clear picture of what success looks like for the customer, and then build towards it methodically. 

IFS’s approach to AI adoption, led by people like Kurt who spent years inside the industries they now serve, is what gives the company credibility in these conversations. He talks about what it takes to get a customer from interest to impact, safely and measurably. That grounded perspective came through in every answer he gave me. 

That is the kind of partner energy leaders should be looking for. And it is the kind of conversation I am glad we are having on Voices of Industry.